Article comprising conductive conduit channels

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a process for preparing an article comprising a layer of nonconductive polymeric material comprising a plurality of integral polymer conduit channels containing a substantially transparent conductive material comprising applying the conductive material to the grooves and applying a protective overcoat within the channels.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional application of U.S. Ser. No. 10/425,005 filed Apr. 28, 2003, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The parent application is one of a group of four patent applications cofiled on Apr. 28, 2003, under Ser. Nos. 10/424,666; 10/425,005; 10/424,639; and 10/425,012 under attorney Docket Nos. 84872, 85007, 85772 and 85773, respectively.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a process for malting a transparent patterned conductive sheet aligned to form conduits in the plane of the conductive sheet.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As electronic devices become smaller, the requirements for precise electrical connection at extremely fine pitch continue to increase. As an example, semiconductors, such as integrated circuits, are formed on wafers that are then cut into dice or chips that individually may be mounted on substrates. Typically, the substrate has fine electrically conductive circuit lines, and electrical and thermal contact must be made between the substrate and chip. As electronic appliances, such as computers, tape players, televisions, telephones, and other appliances become smaller, thinner, and more portable, the size requirements for semiconductors and the means for providing electrical connection between semiconductors and substrates, or between flexible circuits and rigid printed circuits, become increasingly demanding.

One method for providing electrical conductivity between two electrical elements is through the use of a Z-axis conductive sheet material, such as a Z-axis adhesive. Whether the sheet material is an elastomer or an adhesive, the continuing challenge is to keep pace with the miniaturization in the electronics industry. Z-axis conductivity can be achieved through a number of means, including dispersing conductive particles throughout a binder matrix. Where electrical connection on a very fine pitch is required, the conductive elements may be placed only where the electrodes are located, typically requiring indexing the conductive sheet to the electrodes, or the conductive elements may be placed at such close spacing, relative to the spacing of the electrodes, that indexing is not required. U.S. Pat. No. 5,087,494, (Calhoun et al) is an example of an electrically conductive adhesive tape having conductive particles placed at precise locations, on a fine pitch. The Calhoun et al '494 patent also discusses a number of available options for electrically conductive adhesive tapes.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,008,300 (Ponn) and 3,680,037 (Nellis, et al.), teach a dielectric sheet material having a plurality of compressible resilient conductive plugs that extend between the faces of the sheet. The sheet can be placed between circuits to make electrical connection there between. The conductive plugs of Ponn and Nellis are dispersions of conductive particles in a binder material.

Other patents teach orienting magnetic particles dispersed in a binder by applying a magnetic field, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,448,837 (Ikade, et al.); 4,546,037 (King); 4,548,862 (Hartman); 4,644,101 (Jin, et al.); and 4,838,347 (Dentinni). The distribution of the particles after orientation and curing is sufficiently uniform to be functional for certain applications, but is insufficient for other applications. If the number of particles used in these articles were to be increased in an attempt to reach smaller spacings for finer pitch connections, agglomeration would likely occur thereby causing shorting. Accordingly, there is a need for a fine pitch means of providing electrical interconnection between two surfaces in a precise manner, at an extremely fine pitch.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,522,962 teaches conductive sheets that are conductive through the thickness but insulating in the lateral directions. While conductive materials are disclosed, they tend to have low light transmission and therefore are not particularly useful in transmission devices such as liquid crystal displays. Further, the conductive materials utilized in this patent are conductive ferromagnetic particles coated in a binder.

One known prior process for preparing chill rollers involves creating a main surface pattern using a mechanical engraving process. The engraving process has many limitations including misalignment causing tool lines in the surface, high price, and lengthy processing. Accordingly, it is desirable to not use mechanical engraving to manufacture chill rollers.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,285,001 (Fleming et al) relates to an exposure process using excimer laser ablation of substrates to improve the uniformity of repeating microstructures on an ablated substrate or to create three-dimensional microstructures on an ablated substrate. This method is difficult to apply to create a master chill roll useful to manufacture complex random three-dimensional structures and is also cost prohibitive.

In U.S. Pat. No. 6,124,974 (Burger) the substrates are made using lithographic processes. This lithographic process is repeated for successive photomasks to generate a three-dimensional relief structure corresponding to the desired lenslet. This procedure to form a master to create three-dimensional features into a plastic film is time consuming and cost prohibitive.

Conductive layers containing electronic conductors such as conjugated conducting polymers, conducting carbon particles, crystalline semiconductor particles, amorphous semiconductive fibrils, and continuous semiconducting thin films can be used more effectively than ionic conductors to dissipate static charge since their electrical conductivity is independent of relative humidity and only slightly influenced by ambient temperature. Of the various types of electronic conductors, electrically conducting metal-containing particles, such as semiconducting metal oxides, are particularly effective when dispersed in suitable polymeric film-forming binders in combination with polymeric non-film-forming particles as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,340,676; 5,466,567; 5,700,623. Binary metal oxides doped with appropriate donor heteroatoms or containing oxygen deficiencies have been disclosed in prior art to be useful in antistatic layers for photographic elements, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,275,103; 4,416,963; 4,495,276; 4,394,441; 4,418,141; 4,431,764; 4,495,276; 4,571,361; 4,999,276; 5,122,445; 5,294,525; 5,382,494; 5,459,021; 5,484,694 and others. Suitable claimed conductive metal oxides include: zinc oxide, titania, tin oxide, alumina, indium oxide, silica, magnesia, zirconia, barium oxide, molybdenum trioxide, tungsten trioxide, and vanadium pentoxide. Preferred doped conductive metal oxide granular particles include antimony-doped tin oxide, fluorine-doped tin oxide, aluminum-doped zinc oxide, and niobium-doped titania. Additional preferred conductive ternary metal oxides disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,368,995 include zinc antimonate and indium antimonate. Other conductive metal-containing granular particles including metal borides, carbides, nitrides and silicides have been disclosed in Japanese Kokai No. JP 04-055,492.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,077,655; 6,096,491; 6,124,083; 6,162,596; 6,187,522; 6,190,846; and others describe imaging elements, including motion imaging films, containing electrically conductive layers comprising conductive polymers. One such electrically-conductive polymer comprises an electrically conductive 3,4-dialkoxy substituted polythiophene styrene sulfonate complex.

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED BY THE INVENTION

There remains a need for an electrically conductive sheet that is transparent for use in transmitted display devices while being protected from abrasion or harsh ambient conditions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a process for forming an article containing a layer of nonconductive polymeric material comprising a plurality of patterned integral conduit channels that contain a transparent electrically conductive polymeric material that are conductive in the plane of the layer and provide pathways for conduction of electricity, which material is overcoated within the channels with a protective overcoat having a resistivity of at least 5000 ohm-meters, wherein the conduit channels comprise grooves in the surface of the polymeric material, wherein the conduits, measured from the surface of the top of the conduit, have a depth of between 0.1 and 100 micrometers, comprising the steps of:

a) casting or extrusion molding to form the channeled article;

b) coating the surface and grooves of the channeled article with a dispersion containing a transparent electrically conductive polymeric material;

c) removing excess dispersion from the surface of the channeled article;

d) drying the conductor in the grooves; and

e) applying a protective overcoat within the grooves having a resistivity of at least 5000 ohm-meters

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECT OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides readily manufactured article exhibiting improved light transmission while simultaneously providing conductive conduits. The invention also provides a means to protect the delicate transparent conductive coatings from abrasion or harsh ambient conditions such as those typical of display devices.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The FIGURE illustrates a cross section of conductive conduit containing a conductive material and a protection layer in accordance with the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The FIGURE illustrates a cross section of a sheet 8 with a conductive conduit containing a conductive material and a protection layer. Transparent polymer base sheet 2 contains a W-shaped conduit. Transparent conductive polymer 4 is applied to the bottom of the W-shaped conduit. Protective material 6 is applied to conductive polymer 4 to protect the conductive polymer from abrasion and contamination. Further, protective material 6 protects the electrical reliability of conductive polymer 4 as scratches can cause disruption to the flow of electrical current or signals. The preferred W-shaped conduit allows for the creation of a dual path for electrical current and signals in conductive layer 4, creating desired electrical redundancy for the conductive sheet in FIG. 1. Further, the W-shaped conduit has been shown to improve electrically conductive polymer adhesion to the bottom of the conduit compared to flat bottomed conduits. Light energy incident on conductive sheet 8 is transmitted through base sheet 2, transparent conductive material 4 and transparent protective material 6.

The invention has numerous advantages over prior practices in the art. The invention provides an electrically conductive sheet material that is conductive in the plane of the sheet while being transparent to light energy perpendicular to the direction of the sheet. Conductive conduits, which are spaced by insulating thermoplastic in lateral directions, provide precision pathways for conducting of electricity from an origination point to the destination. Conducting sheet that are patterned and are transparent to visible light can be used for membrane switches, radio frequency antennae, display devices, connections between semiconductors and substrates or between flexible circuits and rigid printed circuits. Because the conductive material is transparent, the article or sheet of the invention may also be utilized in combination with imaging layers such as ink jet printed images.

The conduit channels are located below the grade or upper surface of the polymer sheet (suitably thermoplastic) and can be formed in a variety of sizes and shapes to provide the desired input and output characteristics. Because the conduits are polymeric, the conduits can also have a variety of orientations such as conduits that are perpendicular to each other, conduits which curve, circular conduits or conduits that are connected at some logical point.

The conductive conduits in the invention provide protection to the electrically conductive material contained in the conduits. By protecting the conductive material of the invention, scratching, abrasion, and contamination of the electrically conductive material are greatly reduced compared to prior art conductive patterns that reside of the surface of a substrate. Scratching of the conductive material could result in an unwanted disruption of in the conductivity of one or more conduits resulting in device failure. Because the conductive material of the invention is contained with conduits, the coating is further protected with an auxiliary coating, creating a coating surface for cholesteric liquid crystals for example.

While thermoplastic materials offer good chemical and heat resistance, the addition of nano-composite materials such as clay to the conduits further improve the heat resistance, electrical insulation properties and abrasion resistance while not significantly reducing the transmission properties of the conductive sheet. By adding pigments or dyes to either the conductive conduits or the insulating thermoplastic structures that contain the conductive materials, the conductive sheet of the invention can provide colored transmission light energy or contain a pattern such as the word “stop” as in a stop sign. These and other advantages will be apparent from the detailed description below.

The term “LCD” means any rear projection display device that utilizes liquid crystals to form the image. The term “diffuser” means any material that is able to diffuse specular light (light with a primary direction) to a diffuse light (light with random light direction). The term “light” means visible light. The term “diffuse light transmission” means the percent diffusely transmitted light at 500 nm as compared to the total amount of light at 500 nm of the light source. The term “total light transmission” means percentage light transmitted through the sample at 500 nm as compared to the total amount of light at 500 nm of the light source. This includes both spectral and diffuse transmission of light. The term “diffuse light transmission efficiency” means the ratio of % diffuse transmitted light at 500 nm to % total transmitted light at 500 nm multiplied by a factor of 100. The term “polymeric film” means a film comprising polymers. The term “polymer” means homo- and co-polymers. The term “average”, with respect to lens size and frequency, means the arithmetic mean over the entire film surface area.

The term “Transparent” means a sheet with total light transmission of 70% or greater at 500 nm. The term “Conduit” or “conduit channel” means a trench, furrow or groove in the sheet of the invention. The conduits in the sheet contain the conductive materials useful in the invention. The conduits range in thickness between 0.5 and 100 micrometers. The conduits have a general direction in the plane of the sheet, although the conduit can vary in the depth of the sheet. Conduits in the plane of the sheet can be ordered rows or arrays, random in nature, straight, curved, circular, oval, square, triangular, sine waves, or square waves. The conduits generally start with an origination point and end at a termination point. The conduits may be discrete or may intersect. In the sheet, there may be one or more conduits. The conduit frequency in any direction ranges from one conduit/cm to 1000 conduits/cm.

The term conductive means the ability of a material to conduct electrical current. Conductivity is the reciprocal of resistivity. Resistivity is measured in units of ohm-meters. A common way of referring to surface resistance of a conductive layer coated on a substrate, is by the term surface electrical resistance or SER. SER is measured in units of ohms/square. Conductive materials utilized in this invention generally have resistivity of less than 5000 ohm meters. Conductive layers utilized in this invention generally have measured SER of less than 5000 ohms/square.

In order to provide a sheet that is patterned to be conductive to electrical current and is transparent to visible light energy, an article comprising a polymer layer containing a plurality of integral polymer conduits containing a substantially transparent conductive material is preferred. The polymer conduits provide electrical insulation between the conduits and the material contained in the conduits is both transparent and electrically conductive. Because the material in the conduits is both conductive and transparent, the article of the invention can be utilized in application that required electrically conductive properties and transparency to visible light. Examples of the utility of the sheet containing a plurality of conduits containing a transparent, conductive materials include simple displays that use a coated layer of cholesteric liquid crystals in which the electrical field of the energized conduits changes the orientation of the cholesteric liquid crystals, rear illuminated watch electronics in which illumination light energy is transmitted through the conductive conduits and transparent hidden radio frequency antenna.

A preferred conductive material comprises a conductive polymer. Conductive polymers are preferred because they contain the desired visible light transparency properties, can be easily coated roll to roll in the conduits compared to prior art metallic conductors which utilize vacuum deposition methods for application, have resistivity of less than 5000 ohm meter and more typically in the 0.01 to 5000 ohm meter range and can contain addenda such as a transparent dye. Additionally, the conductive polymer useful in the invention have been shown to have excellent adhesion to the bottom of the polymer conduits located in the depth of the polymer sheet.

In order to provide electrically conductive conduits that have a high visible light transmission conductive polymers selected from the group consisting of substituted or unsubstituted aniline containing polymers, substituted or unsubstituted pyrrole containing polymers, substituted or unsubstituted thiophene containing polymers. The above polymers provide the desired conductivity, adhesion to the conduits and have high light transmission.

Among the aforesaid electrically conductive polymers, the ones based on polypyrrole and polythiophene are particularly preferred as they provide optimum electrical and optical properties.

A particularly preferred electrically conductive polymer for the present invention is polythiophene based, mainly because of its commercial availability in large quantity.

The electrically conductive material of the present invention is preferably coated from a coating composition comprising a polythiophene/polyanion composition containing an electrically conductive polythiophene with conjugated polymer backbone component and a polymeric polyanion component. A preferred polythiophene component for use in accordance with the present invention contains thiophene nuclei substituted with at least one alkoxy group, e.g., a C₁-C₁₂ alkoxy group or a —O(CH₂CH₂O)_(n)CH₃ group, with n being 1 to 4, or where the thiophene nucleus is ring closed over two oxygen atoms with an alkylene group including such group in substituted form. Preferred polythiophenes for use in accordance with the present invention may be made up of structural units corresponding to the following general formula (I)

in which: each of R¹ and R² independently represents hydrogen or a C₁₋₄ alkyl group or together represent an optionally substituted C₁₋₄ alkylene group, preferably an ethylene group, an optionally alkyl-substituted methylene group, an optionally C₁₋₁₂ alkyl- or phenyl-substituted 1,2-ethylene group, 1,3-propylene group or 1,2-cyclohexylene group. The preparation of electrically conductive polythiophene/polyanion compositions and of aqueous dispersions of polythiophenes synthesized in the presence of polyanions, as well as the production of antistatic coatings from such dispersions is described in EP 0 440 957 (and corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,300,575), as well as, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,681; 5,354,613; 5,370,981; 5,372,924; 5,391,472; 5,403,467; 5,443,944; and 5,575,898, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein.

The preparation of an electrically conductive polythiophene in the presence of a polymeric polyanion compound may proceed, e.g., by oxidative polymerization of 3,4-dialkoxythiophenes or 3,4-alkylenedioxythiophenes according to the following general formula (II):

wherein: R¹ and R² are as defined in general formula (I), with oxidizing agents typically used for the oxidative polymerization of pyrrole and/or with oxygen or air in the presence of polyacids, preferably in aqueous medium containing optionally a certain amount of organic solvents, at temperatures of 0° to 1000° C. The polythiophenes get positive charges by the oxidative polymerization, the location and number of said charges is not determinable with certainty and therefore they are not mentioned in the general formula of the repeating units of the polythiophene polymer. When using air or oxygen as the oxidizing agent their introduction proceeds into a solution containing thiophene, polyacid, and optionally catalytic quantities of metal salts till the polymerization is complete. Oxidizing agents suitable for the oxidative polymerization of pyrrole are described, for example, in J. Am. Soc. 85, 454 (1963). Inexpensive and easy-to-handle oxidizing agents are preferred such as iron(III) salts, e.g. FeCl₃, Fe(ClO₄)₃ the iron(III) salts of organic acids and inorganic acids containing organic residues, likewise H₂, O₂, K₂ Cr₂, O₇, alkali or ammonium persulfates, alkali perborates, potassium permanganate and copper salts such as copper tetrafluoroborate. Theoretically, 2.25 equivalents of oxidizing agent per mol of thiophene are required for the oxidative polymerization thereof [ref J. Polym. Sci. Part A, Polymer Chemistry, Vol. 26, p. 1287 (1988)]. In practice, however, the oxidizing agent is used in a certain excess, for example, in excess of 0.1 to 2 equivalents per mol of thiophene.

For the polymerization, thiophenes corresponding to the above general formula (II), a polyacid and oxidizing agent may be dissolved or emulsified in an organic solvent or preferably in water and the resulting solution or emulsion is stirred at the envisaged polymerization temperature until the polymerization reaction is completed. The weight ratio of polythiophene polymer component to polymeric polyanion component(s) in the polythiophene/polyanion compositions employed in the present invention can vary widely, for example preferably from about 50/50 to 15/85. By that technique stable aqueous polythiophene/polyanion dispersions are obtained having a solids content of 0.5 to 55% by weight and preferably of 1 to 10% by weight. The polymerization time may be between a few minutes and 30 hours, depending on the size of the batch, the polymerization temperature and the kind of oxidizing agent. The stability of the obtained polythiophene/polyanion composition dispersion may be improved during and/or after the polymerization by the addition of dispersing agents, e.g. anionic surface active agents such as dodecyl sulfonate, alkylaryl polyether sulfonates described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,525,621. The size of the polymer particles in the dispersion is typically in the range of from 5 nm to 1 μm, preferably in the range of 40 to 400 nm.

Polyanions used in the synthesis of these electrically conducting polymers are the anions of polymeric carboxylic acids such as polyacrylic acids, polymethacrylic acids or polymaleic acids and polymeric sulfonic acids such as polystyrenesulfonic acids and polyvinylsulfonic acids, the polymeric sulfonic acids being those preferred for this invention. These polycarboxylic and polysulfonic acids may also be copolymers of vinylcarboxylic and vinylsulfonic acids with other polymerizable monomers such as the esters of acrylic acid and styrene. The anionic (acidic) polymers used in conjunction with the dispersed polythiophene polymer have preferably a content of anionic groups of more than 2% by weight with respect to said polymer compounds to ensure sufficient stability of the dispersion. The molecular weight of the polyacids providing the polyanions preferably is 1,000 to 2,000,000, particularly preferably 2,000 to 500,000. The polyacids or their alkali salts are commonly available, e.g., polystyrenesulfonic acids and polyacrylic acids, or they may be produced based on known methods. Instead of the free acids required for the formation of the electrically conducting polymers and polyanions, mixtures of alkali salts of polyacids and appropriate amounts of monoacids may also be used.

While general synthesis procedures and compositions are described above, the polythiophene/polyanion compositions employed in the present invention are not new themselves, and are commercially available. Preferred electrically-conductive polythiophene/polyanion polymer compositions for use in the present invention include 3,4-dialkoxy substituted polythiophene/poly(styrene sulfonate), with the most preferred electrically-conductive polythiophene/polyanion polymer composition being poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene)/poly(styrene sulfonate), which is available commercially from Bayer Corporation as Baytron P.

The other preferred electrically conductive polymers include poly(pyrrole styrene sulfonate) and poly(3,4-ethylene dioxypyrrole styrene sulfonate) as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,674,654; and 5,665,498; respectively.

Any polymeric film-forming binder, including water soluble polymers, synthetic latex polymers such as acrylics, styrenes, acrylonitriles, vinyl halides, butadienes, and others, or water dispersible condensation polymers such as polyurethanes, polyesters, polyester ionomers, polyamides, epoxides, and the like, may be optionally employed in the conductive layer to improve integrity of the conductive layer and to improve adhesion of the antistatic layer to an underlying and/or overlying layer. Preferred binders include polyester ionomers, vinylidene chloride containing interpolymers and sulfonated polyurethanes as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,124,083 incorporated herein by reference. The electrically-conductive polythiophene/polyanion composition to added binder weight ratio can vary from 100:0 to 0.1:99.9, preferably from 1:1 to 1:20, and more preferably from 1:2 to 1:20. The dry coverage of the electrically conductive substituted or unsubstituted thiophene-containing polymer employed depends on the inherent conductivity of the electrically-conductive polymer and the electrically-conductive polymer to binder weight ratio. A preferred range of dry coverage for the electrically-conductive substituted or unsubstituted thiophene-containing polymer component of the polythiophene/polyanion compositions is from about 0.5 mg/m.sup.2 to about 3.5 g/m.sup.2, this dry coverage should provide the desired electrical resistivity values while minimizing the impact of the electrically-conductive polymer on the color and optical properties of the article of the invention.

In addition to the electrically-conductive agent(s) and polymeric binder, the electrically-conductive materials useful in the invention may include crosslinking agents, organic polar solvents such as N-methylpyrrolidone, ethylene or diethylene glycol, and the like; coating aids and surfactants, dispersing aids, coalescing aids, biocides, matte particles, dyes, pigments, plasticizer, adhesion promoting agents, particularly those comprising silane and/or epoxy silane, waxes, and other lubricants. A common level of coating aid in the conductive coating formula, e.g., is 0.01 to 0.3 weight % active coating aid based on the total solution weight. These coating aids are typically either anionic or nonionic and can be chosen from many that are applied for aqueous coating. The various ingredients of the coating solution may benefit from pH adjustment prior to mixing, to insure compatibility. Commonly used agents for pH adjustment are ammonium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, tetraethyl amine, sulfuric acid, acetic acid, etc.

The electrically-conductive materials useful in the invention may be applied from either aqueous or organic solvent coating formulations using any of the known coating techniques such as roller coating, gravure coating, air knife coating, rod coating, extrusion coating, blade coating, curtain coating, slide coating, and the like. After coating, the layers are generally dried by simple evaporation, which can be accelerated by known techniques such as convection heating. Known coating and drying methods are described in further detail in Research Disclosure No. 308119, Published December 1989, pages 1007 to 1008. A preferred method for the coating of the electrically conductive materials into the conduits is roll coating of the sheet containing the conduits followed by removal of the conductive material located at the peaks of the conduits by a scraping blade or reverse roll contacting the peaks of the conduits.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the conductive material comprises a gelatin binder and a metallic salt. The gelatin binder has been shown to provide high visible light transparency, has excellent adhesion to the polymer conduits and contains moisture to aid in building a salt bridge between the particles of metallic salt. Examples of preferred metallic salts include sodium chloride, potassium iodide, calcium chloride, potassium bromide, sodium iodide, magnesium chloride, silver chloride and silver iodide. One interesting aspect of this particular embodiment is the humidity sensitivity of the gelatin. As ambient relative humidity moves below 50% the moisture content of the gelatin lowers and thus the resistivity of the conductive conduit increases creating a conductive circuit that is sensitivity to humidity. This particular embodiment would be useful as a humidity sensor that would control a system to add moisture to air as the humidity drops.

The desired resistivity of the conductive material is less than 5000 ohm meter. The preferred resistivity of the conductive materials is less than 1000 ohm meter, more preferred less than 600 ohm meter and most preferred between 0.01 and 300 ohm meter. In terms of SER of the conductive layer inside the conduit, the desired value is less than 5000 ohm/square, preferably less than 1000 ohm/square, more preferably less than 600 ohm/square and most preferably less than 300 ohm/square.

Because the conductive materials useful in the invention tend to have some level of coloration and thus transmitted light density, the lower levels of preferred resistivity will generally increase the density and thus lower the light transmission. For example the transmission difference between 1000 ohm meters and 100 ohm meters for polythiophene is approximately 5%. Higher levels of preferred resistivity are preferred for high transparency requirements or for low cost liquid crystal display applications were resistivity is not a primary concern for changing the orientation of the cholesteric liquid crystal.

This invention is significantly advantaged over prior art patterned sheet in that the plurality of polymer conduits are integral to the polymer sheet. Integral polymer conduits tend to have the same materials composition as the sheet and there is no well defined boundary as one would expect when examining a coated structure. Integral conduit channels are advantaged over ultra violet coated and cured channels in that the conduits are integral, that is part of the polymer sheet rather than being applied to a polymer sheet, which creates unwanted interface issues such as delamination and cracking due to coefficient of thermal expansion differences between the channel materials and the sheet materials. Because the conductive materials do have some low level of resistivity, the energy lost will be transformed into heat energy subjecting the article of the invention to changes in temperature, compounded by extreme ambient changes in temperature (−20 degrees Celsius to 100 degrees Celsius) that can be expected. Integral conduits have the same thermal expansion coefficients and thus do not suffer from prior art interface issues, do not suffer from multiple optical surfaces which create unwanted Fresnel reflections and can be produced with high levels of precision.

The conductive materials contained in the conduits of the invention are preferably protected with an overcoat material. By protecting the conductive material in the conduit, scratching and delamination of the conductive material in the conduit is avoided to produce a rugged conductive sheet. Further, by protecting the conductive material in the conduit, a secondary coating surface, adjacent to the protective layer can be utilized for coatings or printing. Examples of coatings or printing include imaging layers, printed membrane circuit designs, coatings of cholesteric liquid crystal materials, and microlens arrays to manage the output of the transmitted light.

The protective overcoat layer preferably has a pencil hardness of greater than 2H. A pencil hardness greater than 2H resists many of the scratching forces caused during device assembly or actual use. Scratching of the overcoat layer will cause unwanted disruptions to the transmitted light and thus will reduce the optical utility of the invention. The protective overcoat preferably has a surface roughness less than 0.18 micrometers. Surface roughness greater than 0.20 micrometers has been shown to diffuse transmitted light and reduce the backlight intensity of membrane switches for example. Additionally, surface roughness less than 0.18 provides an excellent surface for auxiliary coatings or printing. The protective overcoat preferably has a resistivity greater than 5000 ohm meters. A resistivity greater than 5000 ohm meters provides sufficient electrical current flow resistance to prevent shorts in a circuit current drain or unwanted electrical fields. The protective overcoat preferably has a surface energy less than 40 dynes/cm². By providing a surface energy less than 40 dynes/cm², water and other aqueous solvents which would change the resistivity of the conductive material form beads on the surface of the overcoat and can easily be removed. The protective overcoat layer may consist of suitable material that protects the image from environmental solvents, resists scratching, and does not interfere with the light transmission quality. The protective overcoat layer is preferably applied to the conducive material in either a uniform coating or a pattern wise coating. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the protective overcoat is applied in the presence of an electric field and fused to the topmost layer causing the transparent polymer particles to form a continuous polymeric layer is preferred. An electrophotographic toner applied polymer is preferred, as it is an effective way to provide a thin layer.

In another embodiment, the protective overcoat layer is coatable from aqueous solution and forms a continuous, water-impermeable protective layer in a post-process fusing step. The protective overcoat layer is preferably formed by coating polymer beads or particles of 0.1 to 50 μm in average size together with a polymer latex binder on the emulsion side of a sensitized photographic product. Optionally, a small amount of water-soluble coating aids (viscosifiers, surfactants) can be included in the layer, as long as they leach out of the coating during processing. After coating the sheet is treated in such a way as to cause fusing and coalescence of the coated polymer beads, by heat and/or pressure (fusing), solvent treatment, or other means so as to form the desired continuous, water impermeable protective layer.

Examples of suitable polymers from which the polymer particles used in protective overcoat layer can be selected include poly(vinyl chloride), poly(vinylidene chloride), poly(vinyl chloride-co-vinylidene chloride), chlorinated polypropylene, poly(vinyl chloride-co-vinyl acetate), poly(vinyl chloride-co-vinyl acetate-co-maleic anhydride), ethyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, poly(acrylic acid) esters, linseed oil-modified alkyd resins, rosin-modified alkyd resins, phenol-modified alkyd resins, phenolic resins, polyesters, poly(vinyl butyral), polyisocyanate resins, polyurethanes, poly(vinyl acetate), polyamides, chroman resins, dammar gum, ketone resins, maleic acid resins, vinyl polymers, such as polystyrene and polyvinyltoluene or copolymer of vinyl polymers with methacrylates or acrylates, poly(tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene), low-molecular weight polyethylene, phenol-modified pentaerythritol esters, poly(styrene-co-indene-co-acrylonitrile), poly(styrene-co-indene), poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile), poly(styrene-co-butadiene), poly(stearyl methacrylate) blended with poly(methyl methacrylate), copolymers with siloxanes and polyalkenes. These polymers can be used either alone or in combination. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the polymer comprises a polyester or poly(styrene-co-butyl acrylate). Preferred polyesters are based on ethoxylated and/or propoxylated bisphenol A and one or more of terephthalic acid, dodecenylsuccinic acid and fumaric acid as they form an acceptable protective overcoat layer that generally survives the rigors of a packaging label.

To increase the abrasion resistance of the protective overcoat layer, polymers which are cross-linked or branched can be used. For example, poly(styrene-co-indene-co-divinylbenzene), poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile-co-divinylbenzene), or poly(styrene-co-butadiene-co-divinylbenzene) can be used.

The polymer particles for the protective overcoat layer should be transparent, and are preferably colorless. But it is specifically contemplated that the polymer particle can have some color for the purposes of color correction, or for special effects. Thus, there can be incorporated into the polymer particle dye which will impart color. In addition, additives can be incorporated into the polymer particle which will give to the overcoat desired properties. For example, a UV absorber can be incorporated into the polymer particle to make the overcoat UV absorptive, thus protecting the sheet from UV induced fading or blue tint can be incorporated into the polymer particle to offset the native yellowness of the gelatin used in the gelatin salt conductive material.

In addition to the polymer particles which form the protective overcoat layer, there can be combined with the polymer composition other particles which will modify the surface characteristics of the element. Such particle are solid and confusable at the conditions under which the polymer particles are fused, and include inorganic particles, like silica, and organic particles, like methylmethacrylate beads, which will not melt during the fusing step and which will impart surface roughness to the overcoat.

The surface characteristics of the protective overcoat layer are in large part dependent upon the physical characteristics of the polymer which forms the toner and the presence or absence of solid, nonfusible particles. However, the surface characteristics of the overcoat also can be modified by the conditions under which the surface is fused. For example, the surface characteristics of the fusing member that is used to fuse the toner to form the continuous overcoat layer can be selected to impart a desired degree of smoothness, texture or pattern to the surface of the element. Thus, a highly smooth fusing member will give a glossy surface to the imaged element, a textured fusing member will give a matte or otherwise textured surface to the element, a patterned fusing member will apply a pattern to the surface of the article.

Suitable examples of the polymer latex binder include a latex copolymer of butyl acrylate, 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonate, and acetoacetoxyethylmethacrylate. Other latex polymers which are useful include polymers having a 20 to 10,000 nm diameter and a Tg of less than 60° C. suspended in water as a colloidal suspension.

Examples of suitable coating aids for the protective overcoat layer include any water soluble polymer or other material that imparts appreciable viscosity to the coating suspension, such as high MW polysaccharide derivatives (e.g. xanthan gum, guar gum, gum acacia, Keltrol (an anionic polysaccharide supplied by Merck and Co., Inc.) high MW polyvinyl alcohol, carboxymethylcellulose, hydroxyethylcellulose, polyacrylic acid and its salts, polyacrylamide, etc). Surfactants include any surface active material that will lower the surface tension of the coating preparation sufficiently to prevent edge-withdrawal, repellencies, and other coating defects. These include alkyloxy- or alkylphenoxypolyether or polyglycidol derivatives and their sulfates, such as nonylphenoxypoly(glycidol) available from Olin Matheson Corporation or sodium octylphenoxypoly(ethyleneoxide) sulfate, organic sulfates or sulfonates, such as sodium dodecyl sulfate, sodium dodecyl sulfonate, sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate (Aerosol OT), and alkylcarboxylate salts such as sodium decanoate.

In another embodiment, the application of an ultraviolet polymerizable monomers and oligomers to the conductive materials is preferred. UV cure polymers are preferred, as they can easily be applied to the conductive material in both a uniform coating or a patterned coating. Preferred UV cure polymers include aliphatic urethane, allyl methacrylate, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, polyisocyanate and hydroxyethyl methacrylate. A preferred photoinitiator is benzil dimethyl ketal. The preferred intensity of radiation is between 0.1 and 1.5 milliwatt/cm². Below 0.05, insufficient cross-linking occurs yielding a protective layer that does not offer sufficient protection for the protection of the conductive materials.

In another embodiment of the invention, the application of a pre-formed polymer layer to the outermost surface of the conduits form an protective overcoat layer is most preferred. Application of a pre-formed sheet is preferred because pre-formed sheets are tough and durable easily withstanding the environmental solvents and handling forces. Application of the pre-formed polymer sheet is preferable carried out though lamination after image development. An adhesive is applied to either the photographic label or the pre-formed polymer sheet prior to a pressure nip that adheres the two surfaces and eliminates any trapped air that would degrade the quality of the transmitted light.

The pre-formed sheet preferably is an oriented polymer because of the strength and toughness developed in the orientation process. Preferred polymers for the flexible substrate include polyolefins, polyester and nylon. Preferred polyolefins include polypropylene, polyethylene, polymethylpentene, polystyrene, polybutylene, and mixtures thereof. Polyolefin copolymers, including copolymers of propylene and ethylene such as hexene, butene, and octene are also useful. Polypropylene is most preferred, as it is low in cost and has desirable strength and toughness properties required for a pressure sensitive label.

In another embodiment, the application of a synthetic latex to the conductive materials to form a protective overcoat layer is preferred. A coating of synthetic latex has been shown to provide an acceptable protective overcoat layer and can be coated in an aqueous solution eliminating exposure to solvents. The coating of latex has been shown to provide an acceptable protective overcoat layer for conductive circuits. Preferred synthetic latexes for the protective overcoat layer are made by emulsion polymerization techniques from styrene butadiene copolymer, acrylate resins, and polyvinyl acetate. The preferred particles size for the synthetic latex ranges from 0.05 to 0.15 μm. The synthetic latex is applied to the outermost layer of the silver halide imaging layers by known coating methods that include rod coating, roll coating and hopper coating. The synthetic latexes must be dried after application and must dry transparent so as not to interfere with the quality of the transmitted light energy.

In a preferred embodiment, the conductive material comprises a pigment or dye. Pigments or dye provide coloration to the conductive material creating contrast difference between the insulating areas of the article and the conductive materials. Increasing the transmitted light contrast with a white pigment or carbon black provides allows for a higher contrast image or the ability to lower the illuminant output.

The article of the invention preferably has a light transmission greater than 75% or more preferably a light transmission greater than 90%. By providing high light transmission, the article of the invention can be utilized as a display such as a membrane switch or a radio frequency antenna without the conductive materials obstructing the visible light.

The conduits of the invention preferably comprise thermoplastic polymers. Thermoplastic polymers are preferred as they are generally lower in cost compared to prior art glass, have excellent optical properties and can be efficiently formed into sheets utilizing an extrusion roll molding process were melted polymer is cast against a patterned precision roll forming integral conduits. Preferred polymers for the formation of the complex lenses include polyolefins, polyesters, polyamides, polycarbonates, cellulosic esters, polystyrene, polyvinyl resins, polysulfonamides, polyethers, polyimides, polyvinylidene fluoride, polyurethanes, polyphenylenesulfides, polytetrafluoroethylene, polyacetals, polylatic acid, liquid crystal polymers, cyclo-olefins, polysulfonates, polyester ionomers, and polyolefin ionomers. Copolymers and/or mixtures of these polymers to improve mechanical or optical properties can be used. Preferred polyamides for the transparent complex lenses include nylon 6, nylon 66, and mixtures thereof. Copolymers of polyamides are also suitable continuous phase polymers. An example of a useful polycarbonate is bisphenol-A polycarbonate. Cellulosic esters suitable for use as the continuous phase polymer of the complex lenses include cellulose nitrate, cellulose triacetate, cellulose diacetate, cellulose acetate propionate, cellulose acetate butyrate, and mixtures or copolymers thereof. Preferred polyvinyl resins include polyvinyl chloride, poly(vinyl acetal), and mixtures thereof. Copolymers of vinyl resins can also be utilized. Preferred polyesters for the complex lens of the invention include those produced from aromatic, aliphatic or cycloaliphatic dicarboxylic acids of 4-20 carbon atoms and aliphatic or alicyclic glycols having from 2-24 carbon atoms. Examples of suitable dicarboxylic acids include terephthalic, isophthalic, phthalic, naphthalene dicarboxylic acid, succinic, glutaric, adipic, azelaic, sebacic, fumaric, maleic, itaconic, 1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic, sodiosulfoisophthalic and mixtures thereof. Examples of suitable glycols include ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, butanediol, pentanediol, hexanediol, 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol, diethylene glycol, other polyethylene glycols and mixtures thereof.

The depth of the conduits, measured from the surface of the top of the conduit on the outermost layer of the conductive sheet preferably has a depth of between 0.1 and 100 micrometers, more preferably between 0.1 and 10 micrometers. It has been found that the depth of the channels should roughly equal the thickness of the conductive material plus the thickness of the protective layer. Most contemplated combination of conductive material thickness added to overcoat layer thickness are between 0.10 and 100 micrometers and are optimized for electrical conductivity between 1 and 8 micrometers. The preferred thickness of the sheet is between 20 and 300 micrometers. Below 15 micrometers, the conduits are difficult to form and coat with the conductive materials. Above 300 micrometers, the additional thickness is not cost justified.

The roughness average of the top of said polymer conduits is between 0.25 and 2.5 micrometers. By providing a rough surface to the top conduit, a stand off layer is created for the lamination of an oriented polymer sheet. In another embodiment, the roughness average of the top of the polymer conduits is less than 0.20 micrometers. By providing a smooth conduit surface, auxiliary coating can be added without creating light diffusion in transmission.

The surface roughness of the bottom of the conduits preferably is between 0.25 and 2.5 micrometers. By providing a bottom surface roughness in this range, the amount of surface area is increased compared to a smooth bottom surface which increases the amount of electrical conductivity. Further, by providing a rough bottom surface, the adhesion of the conductive material to the conduit polymer is improved thereby improving the reliability of the conductive conduit as disruption in the coating would result in resistivity greater than 5000 ohm meters. In another embodiment, the bottom surface in the conduit has a surface roughness less than 0.20 micrometers. By providing a smooth bottom surface, transmitted light is less likely to be diffused, improving the contrast of printed layers or imaged layers.

In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the polymer layer further comprises a pressure sensitive adhesive. A pressure sensitive adhesive allows the article of the invention to be positioned on other substrates or devices. An example is adhering the article of the invention to as glass substrate for use as a display device or adhering the article of the invention to a printed circuit board. The pressure sensitive comprises adhesives that are known in the art to be transparent and have a high bond strength. Examples include acrylic and urethane based pressure sensitive adhesive systems.

The plurality of conduits preferably have at least one intersection point. By providing at least one intersection point, the conductive conduits of the invention can power by a single power source such as a DC source, and an be terminated at some logical point such as an IC chip, resistor, capacitor, transistor or electrical ground. In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the plurality of conduits have at least one direction change relative to the conduit starting direction. A direction change of greater than 30 degrees allows the conductive conduits of the invention to be better utilized as connections for an electrical circuit. An example of a direction change greater than 30 degrees would be the electrical connections in a membrane switch. In a membrane switch, the conductive membrane, upon depression, completes an electrical circuit that communicates switch logic with an auxiliary device such as an IC chip. Conductive conduits that change direction are better able to be positioned around the membrane switch contact area often requiring several direction changes to accommodate the layout of the switch.

In order to improve the impact strength of the polymer conduits and improve the temperature resistance of the polymers conduits, nanocomposite addition to the polymer conduits is preferred. Nanocomposite materials have been shown to improve the thermal properties of conduit polymer and increase the mechanical modulus, thus, making them more suitable for polymer circuits and display devices.

“Nanocomposite” shall mean a composite material wherein at least one component comprises an inorganic phase, such as a smectite clay, with at least one dimension in the 0.1 to 100 nanometer range. “Plates” shall mean particles with two dimensions of the same size scale and is significantly greater than the third dimension. Here, length and width of the particle are of comparable size but orders of magnitude greater than the thickness of the particle.

“Layered material” shall mean an inorganic material such as a smectite clay that is in the form of a plurality of adjacent bound layers. “Platelets” shall mean individual layers of the layered material. “Intercalation” shall mean the insertion of one or more foreign molecules or parts of foreign molecules between platelets of the layered material, usually detected by X-ray diffraction technique, as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,891,611 (line 10, col. 5-line 23, col. 7).

“Intercalant” shall mean the aforesaid foreign molecule inserted between platelets of the aforesaid layered material. “Exfoliation” or “delamination” shall mean separation of individual platelets in to a disordered structure without any stacking order. “Intercalated” shall refer to layered material that has at least partially undergone intercalation and/or exfoliation. “Organoclay” shall mean clay material modified by organic molecules.

The layered materials for this invention can comprise any inorganic phase desirably comprising layered materials in the shape of plates with significantly high aspect ratio. However, other shapes with high aspect ratio will also be advantageous, as per the invention. The layered materials preferred for this invention include phyllosilicates, e.g., montmorillonite, particularly sodium montmorillonite, magnesium montmorillonite, and/or calcium montmorillonite, nontronite, beidellite, volkonskoite, hectorite, saponite, sauconite, sobockite, stevensite, svinfordite, vermiculite, magadiite, kenyaite, talc, mica, kaolinite, and mixtures thereof. Other useful layered materials include illite, mixed layered illite/smectite minerals, such as ledikite and admixtures of illites with the clay minerals named above. Other useful layered materials, particularly useful with anionic matrix polymers, are the layered double hydroxides or hydrotalcites, such as Mg₆Al_(3.4)(OH)_(18.8)(CO₃)_(1.7)H₂O, which have positively charged layers and exchangeable anions in the interlayer spaces. Other layered materials having little or no charge on the layers may be useful provided they can be intercalated with swelling agents, which expand their interlayer spacing. Such materials include chlorides such as FeCl₃, FeOCl, chalcogenides, such as TiS₂, MoS₂, and MoS₃, cyanides such as Ni(CN)₂ and oxides such as H₂Si₂O₅, V₆O₁₃, HTiNbO₅, Cr_(0.5)V_(0.5)S₂, V₂O₅, Ag doped V₂O₅, W_(0.2)V_(2.8)O7, Cr₃O₈, MoO₃(OH)₂, VOPO₄-2H₂O, CaPO₄CH₃—H₂O, MnHAsO₄—H₂O, Ag₆Mo₁₀O₃₃ and the like. Preferred layered materials are swellable so that other agents, usually organic ions or molecules, can intercalate and/or exfoliate the layered material resulting in a desirable dispersion of the inorganic phase. These swellable layered materials include phyllosilicates of the 2:1 type, as defined in clay literature (vide, for example, “An introduction to clay colloid chemistry,” by H. van Olphen, John Wiley & Sons Publishers). Typical phyllosilicates with ion exchange capacity of 50 to 300 milliequivalents per 100 grams are preferred. Preferred layered materials for the present invention include smectite clay such as montmorillonite, nontronite, beidellite, volkonskoite, hectorite, saponite, sauconite, sobockite, stevensite, svinfordite, halloysite, magadiite, kenyaite and vermiculite as well as layered double hydroxides or hydrotalcites. Most preferred smectite clays include montmorillonite, hectorite and hydrotalcites, because of commercial availability of these materials.

The aforementioned smectite clay can be natural or synthetic. This distinction can influence the particle size and/or the level of associated impurities. Typically, synthetic clays are smaller in lateral dimension, and therefore possess smaller aspect ratio. However, synthetic clays are purer and are of narrower size distribution, compared to natural clays and may not require any further purification or separation. For this invention, the smectite clay particles should have a lateral dimension of between 0.01 μm and 5 μm, and preferably between 0.05 μm and 2 μm, and more preferably between 0.1 μm and 1 μm. The thickness or the vertical dimension of the clay particles can vary between 0.5 nm and 10 nm, and preferably between 1 nm and 5 nm. The aspect ratio, which is the ratio of the largest and smallest dimension of the clay particles should be between 10:1 and 1000:1 for this invention. The aforementioned limits regarding the size and shape of the particles are to ensure adequate improvements in some properties of the nanocomposites without deleteriously affecting others. For example, a large lateral dimension may result in an increase in the aspect ratio, a desirable criterion for improvement in mechanical and barrier properties. However, very large particles can cause optical defects due to deleterious light scattering, and can be abrasive to processing, conveyance and finishing equipment as well as to other components.

The concentration of smectite clay in the optical component of the invention can vary as per need; however, it is preferred to be <10% by weight of the binder. Significantly higher amounts of clay can impair physical properties of the optical component by rendering it brittle, as well as difficult to process. On the other hand, too low a concentration of clay may fail to achieve the desired optical effect. It is preferred that the clay concentration be maintained between 1 and 10% and more preferred to be between 1.5 and 5% for optimum results.

The smectite clay materials, generally require treatment by one or more intercalants to provide the required interlayer swelling and/or compatibility with the matrix polymer. The resulting interlayer spacing is critical to the performance of the intercalated layered material in the practice of this invention. As used herein the “inter-layer spacing” refers to the distance between the faces of the layers as they are assembled in the intercalated material before any delamination (or exfoliation) takes place. The preferred intercalants include organic and polymeric materials, particularly block copolymers as disclosed in dockets 82056; 82,857; 82858 and 82,859; incorporated herein by reference; Examples of such intercalants include ethoxylated alcohols, polyether block polyamide, poly(ethylene oxide-b-caprolactone) and the like. These preferred intercalants can be incorporated in natural or synthetic clay. These preferred intercalants can also be incorporated in organoclays, which have already been modified by organic molecule(s).

Other Uses

The article of the invention may also be used in conjunction with a light diffuser, for example a bulk diffuser, a lenticular layer, a beaded layer, a surface diffuser, a holographic diffuser, a micro-structured diffuser, another lens array, or various combinations thereof. A diffuser film disperses, or diffuses, the light, thus destroying any diffraction pattern that may arise from the addition of an ordered periodic lens array.

The article of the present invention may be used in combination with a film or sheet made of a transparent polymer. Examples of such polymer are polyesters such as polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate and polyethylene naphthalate, acrylic polymers such as polymethyl methacrylate, and polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polyether sulfone, polysulfone, polyacrylate and triacetyl cellulose. The transparent polymeric film of the invention can also include, in another aspect, one or more optical coatings to improve optical transmission through one or more conduits. It is often desirable to coat a diffuser with a layer of an anti-reflective (AR) coating in order to raise the efficiency of the article.

The article of the present invention may be incorporated with e.g. an additive or a lubricant such as silica for improving the surface-slipperiness of the film within a range not to deteriorate the optical characteristics to vary the light-scattering property with an incident angle. Examples of such additive are organic solvents such as xylene, alcohols or ketones, fine particles of an acrylic resin, silicone resin or Δ metal oxide or a filler.

The article of the present invention usually has optical anisotropy. The polymer sheet containing thermoplastic conduits are generally optically anisotropic materials exhibiting optical anisotropy having an optic axis in the drawing direction. The optical anisotropy is expressed by the product of the film thickness d and the birefringence Δn which is a difference between the refractive index in the slow optic axis direction and the refractive index in the fast optic axis direction in the plane of the film, i.e. Δn*d (retardation). The orientation direction coincides with the drawing axis in the film of the present invention. The drawing axis is the direction of the slow optic axis in the case of a thermoplastic polymer having a positive intrinsic birefringence and is the direction of the fast optic axis for a thermoplastic polymer having a negative intrinsic birefringence. There is no definite requirement for the necessary level of the value of Δn*d since the level depends upon the application of the film.

In the manufacturing process for this invention, preferred conduit polymers are melt extruded from a slit die. In general, a T die or a coat hanger die are preferably used. The process involves extruding the polymer or polymer blend through a slit die and rapidly quenching the extruded web upon a chilled casting drum with the preferred conduit geometry so that the conduit polymer component of the transparent sheet are quenched below their glass solidification temperature and retain the shape of the desired conduits.

A method of fabricating the polymer conduits was developed. The preferred approach comprises the steps of providing a positive master extrusion roll having a plurality of conduits. The sheet is replicated from the master extrusion roller by casting the desired molten polymeric material to the face of the extrusion roll, cooling the desired polymer below the Tg of the polymer and then striping the polymer sheet containing the conduits from the extrusion roll. The patterned roll is created by machine the negative of the pattern into the roller utilizing precision machine techniques such as ion beam milling r diamond turning. The negative of the desired conduit pattern may also be machined into a thin metallic sheet and then wrapped around a roller. The conduits of the invention may also be created by hot embossing, UV cure polymers, vacuum forming or injection molding.

The invention may be used in conjunction with any liquid crystal display devices, typical arrangements of which are described in the following. Liquid crystals (LC) are widely used for electronic displays. In these display systems, an LC layer is situated between a polarizer layer and an analyzer layer and has a director exhibiting an azimuthal twist through the layer with respect to the normal axis. The analyzer is oriented such that its absorbing axis is perpendicular to that of the polarizer. Incident light polarized by the polarizer passes through a liquid crystal cell is affected by the molecular orientation in the liquid crystal, which can be altered by the application of a voltage across the cell. By employing this principle, the transmission of light from an external source, including ambient light, can be controlled. The energy required to achieve this control is generally much less than that required for the luminescent materials used in other display types such as cathode ray tubes. Accordingly, LC technology is used for a number of applications, including but not limited to digital watches, calculators, portable computers, electronic games for which light weight, low power consumption and long operating life are important features.

Active-matrix liquid crystal displays (LCDs) use thin film transistors (TFTs) as a switching device for driving each liquid crystal pixel. These LCDs can display higher-definition images without cross talk because the individual liquid crystal pixels can be selectively driven. Optical mode interference (OMI) displays are liquid crystal displays, which are “normally white,” that is, light is transmitted through the display layers in the off state. Operational mode of LCD using the twisted nematic liquid crystal is roughly divided into a birefringence mode and an optical rotatory mode. “Film-compensated super-twisted nematic” (FSTN) LCDs are normally black, that is, light transmission is inhibited in the off state when no voltage is applied. OMI displays reportedly have faster response times and a broader operational temperature range.

Ordinary light from an incandescent bulb or from the sun is randomly polarized, that is, it includes waves that are oriented in all possible directions. A polarizer is a dichroic material that functions to convert a randomly polarized (“unpolarized”) beam of light into a polarized one by selective removal of one of the two perpendicular plane-polarized components from the incident light beam. Linear polarizers are a key component of liquid-crystal display (LCD) devices.

There are several types of high dichroic ratio polarizers possessing sufficient optical performance for use in LCD devices. These polarizers are made of thin sheets of materials which transmit one polarization component and absorb the other mutually orthogonal component (this effect is known as dichroism). The most commonly used plastic sheet polarizers are composed of a thin, uniaxially-stretched polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) film which aligns the PVA polymer chains in a more-or-less parallel fashion. The aligned PVA is then doped with iodine molecules or a combination of colored dichroic dyes (see, for example, EP 0 182 632 A2, Sumitomo Chemical Company, Limited) which adsorb to and become uniaxially oriented by the PVA to produce a highly anisotropic matrix with a neutral gray coloration. To mechanically support the fragile PVA film it is then laminated on both sides with stiff layers of triacetyl cellulose (TAC), or similar support.

Contrast, color reproduction, and stable gray scale intensities are important quality attributes for electronic displays, which employ liquid crystal technology. The primary factor limiting the contrast of a liquid crystal display is the propensity for light to “leak” through liquid crystal elements or cell, which are in the dark or “black” pixel state. Furthermore, the leakage and hence contrast of a liquid crystal display are also dependent on the angle from which the display screen is viewed. Typically the optimum contrast is observed only within a narrow viewing angle centered about the normal incidence to the display and falls off rapidly as the viewing angle is increased. In color displays, the leakage problem not only degrades the contrast but also causes color or hue shifts with an associated degradation of color reproduction. In addition to black-state light leakage, the narrow viewing angle problem in typical twisted nematic liquid crystal displays is exacerbated by a shift in the brightness-voltage curve as a function of viewing angle because of the optical anisotropy of the liquid crystal material.

The article of the invention was measured for transmission with the Hitachi U4001 UV/V is/NIR spectrophotometer equipped with an integrating sphere. The total transmittance spectra were measured by placing the samples at the beam port with the front surface with conduits towards the integrating sphere. A calibrated 99% diffusely reflecting standard (NIST-traceable) was placed at the normal sample port. The diffuse transmittance spectra were measured in like manner, but with the 99% tile removed. The diffuse reflectance spectra were measured by placing the samples at the sample port with the coated side towards the integrating sphere. In order to exclude reflection from a sample backing, nothing was placed behind the sample. All spectra were acquired between 350 and 800 nm. As the diffuse reflectance results are quoted with respect to the 99% tile, the values are not absolute, but would need to be corrected by the calibration report of the 99% tile.

Percentage total transmitted light refers to percent of light that is transmitted though the sample at all angles. Diffuse transmittance is defined as the percent of light passing though the sample excluding a 2.5 degree angle from the incident light angle. The diffuse light transmission is the percent of light that is passed through the sample by diffuse transmittance. Diffuse reflectance is defined as the percent of light reflected by the sample. The percentages quoted in the examples were measured at 500 nm. These values may not add up to 100% due to absorbencies of the sample or slight variations in the sample measured. Embodiments of the invention may provide not only improved light diffusion and transmission but also a diffusion film of reduced thickness, and that has reduced light scattering tendencies.

EXAMPLES

In this example, polycarbonate V shaped conduits were formed integral to a polycarbonate 100 micrometer sheet. A conductive, transparent form of polythiophene was applied into the V shaped conduits creating a transparent conductive sheet. This invention will demonstrate the conductive and transmissive properties of the polymer sheet containing the conductive, transparent polymer.

The V shaped conduits were made by casting melted polycarbonate against a heated roller containing the negative of the V groove pattern. The V-groove patterned roller was manufactured by precision machining, utilizing a wire EDM cutting tool, the negative of the V groove pattern into the surface of a smooth steel roller.

The V groove patterned roller was used to create the integral polycarbonate conduits by extrusion casting a polycarbonate polymer from a coat hanger slot die comprising substantially 98.0% 68 melt index CD grade polycarbonate (Bayer Chemical), 1.5% antioxidant and 0.5% release agent on to the heated V grove patterned roller (120 degrees C.), cooling the polycarbonate below the Tg of the polycarbonate and striping the polycarbonate web containing the V grove shaped conduits from the heated roller. The thickness of the polymer sheet containing the V-grooves was 100 micrometers. The V grooves were 10 micrometers deep with a 1 micrometer flat at the bottom of the V groove with a pitch of 200 micrometers. There were 20 conduits counted in a direction perpendicular to the primary direction of the conduits. All 20 conduits were roughly equidistant from each other along the 30 cm length of the conduits. The structure of the cast coated light diffusion sheets of the invention was as follows,

Formed Integral Polycarbonate V Grooves

Transparent Polycarbonate Base

After formation of the polycarbonate sheet containing the V groove shaped conduits, the sheet was subjected to corona discharge treatment and coated with a conductive coating composition by hopper coating. The conductive coating composition comprised of Baytron P, a commercially available poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)poly(styrenesulfonate) aqueous dispersion, supplied by Bayer corporation, and other addenda including surfactant, and organic polar solvents. Immediately upon coating, the polycarbonate sheet was carefully wiped off with a wet piece of lint-free cloth so that only the grooves retained the coating composition, which was allowed to dry there. The nominal dry coverage of the transparent, electronically conductive poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)poly(styrenesulfonate) within the groove was estimated to be 0.33 g/M².

The resistivity of the conductive conduits was measured using a FLUKE model 300 multimeter which is a two probe contact method of measuring resistivity. Each conductive conduit was measured for resistivity and the average and range for each of 20 conductive conduits was determined. The average SER of such a conductive transparent layer is 880 ohms/square with a standard deviation of 138 ohms/square.

The polycarbonate sheet containing the conductive, transparent V shaped conduits were measured for % light transmission, % diffuse light transmission, % specular light transmission and % diffuse reflectance and conductivity.

The conductive sheet was measured with the Hitachi U4001 UV/Vis/NIR spectrophotometer equipped with an integrating sphere. The total transmittance spectra were measured by placing the samples at the beam port with the front surface with complex lenses towards the integrating sphere. A calibrated 99% diffusely reflecting standard (NIST-traceable) was placed at the normal sample port. The diffuse transmittance spectra were measured in like manner, but with the 99% tile removed. The diffuse reflectance spectra were measured by placing the samples at the sample port with the coated side towards the integrating sphere. In order to exclude reflection from a sample backing, nothing was placed behind the sample. All spectra were acquired between 350 and 800 nm. As the diffuse reflectance results are quoted with respect to the 99% tile, the values are not absolute, but would need to be corrected by the calibration report of the 99% tile.

Percentage total transmitted light refers to percent of light that is transmitted though the sample at all angles. Diffuse transmittance is defined as the percent of light passing though the sample excluding a 2 degree angle from the incident light angle. The diffuse light transmission is the percent of light that is passed through the sample by diffuse transmittance. Diffuse reflectance is defined as the percent of light reflected by the sample. The percentages quoted in the examples were measured at 500 nm. These values may not add up to 100% due to absorbencies of the sample or slight variations in the sample measured. The Total transmission was 90.1%, the diffuse transmission was 10.8%, the specular transmission was 82.4% and the diffuser reflection was 6.1%.

The data above clearly demonstrates both the electrical and optical utility of the invention. The conductive material applied to the V shaped conduits having an average SER of 880 ohms/square provides excellent electrical conductivity while simultaneously providing an excellent light transmission of 90.1%. This allows the invention material to be particularly useful in electrical application that require both conductivity and transparency such as a membrane switch for an appliance or a security card containing a smart chip. Further, the conduits of the invention provide protection to the delicate conductive polymer improving the reliability of the conductive channel by significantly reducing the disruption of the conductive pattern by scratching or abrasion. Additionally, the geometry of the conduits also allows for the addition of a protective layer further protecting the delicate conductive materials.

The entire contents of the patents and other publications referred to in this specification are incorporated herein by reference.

The invention has been described in detail with particular reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, but it will be understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the scope of the invention.

PARTS LIST

-   2. Transparent base sheet -   4. Transparent conductive material -   6. Transparent protective material -   8. Conductive sheet with conduit containing a conductive material     and a protective layer 

1. A process for forming an article containing a layer of nonconductive polymeric material comprising a plurality of patterned integral conduit channels that contain a transparent electrically conductive polymeric material that are conductive in the plane of the layer and provide pathways for conduction of electricity, which material is overcoated within the channels with a protective overcoat having a resistivity of at least 5000 ohm-meters, wherein the conduit channels comprise grooves in the surface of the polymeric material, wherein the conduits, measured from the surface of the top of the conduit, have a depth of between 0.1 and 100 micrometers, comprising the steps of: a) casting or extrusion molding to form the channeled article; b) coating the surface and grooves of the channeled article with a dispersion containing a transparent electrically conductive polymeric material; c) removing excess dispersion from the surface of the channeled article; d) drying the conductor in the grooves; and e) applying a protective overcoat within the grooves having a resistivity of at least 5000 ohm-meters
 2. The process of claim 1 wherein the protective overcoat is water impermeable.
 3. The process of claim 1 wherein the protective material is applied by electrophotographic application and fusing or by coating and fusing an aqueous solution or dispersion of protective material.
 4. The process of claim 3 wherein the protective material is applied by electrophotographic application and fusing.
 5. The process of claim 3 wherein the protective material is applied by coating and drying an aqueous solution or dispersion of protective material in the grooves.
 6. The process of claim 5 wherein the protective material is applied as a dispersion of polymer beads in a polymer latex binder.
 7. The process of claim 6 wherein the protective material is cross-linked during fusing.
 8. The process of claim 7 wherein the protective material is one curable by the application of UV or heat and is followed by the application of UV or heat to effect fusing.
 9. The process of claim 1 comprising coating a smoothing layer on the formed article.
 10. The process of claim 1 wherein said protective overcoat material has a surface energy less than 40 dynes/cm².
 11. The process of claim 1 wherein the transparent conductive material further comprises a pigment.
 12. The process of claim 1 wherein said transparent conductive material further comprises a colored dye.
 13. The process of claim 1 wherein said transparent conductive material wave guides visible light in the channel along the length of the channel.
 14. The process of claim 1 wherein said article has a light transmission greater than 90%.
 15. The process of claim 1 wherein said conduits have a depth of between 0.1 and 10 micrometers.
 16. The process of claim 1 wherein said conduits have a frequency of from 1 to 1000 conduits/cm.
 17. The process of claim 1 wherein said article has a thickness between 20 and 350 micrometers.
 18. The process of claim 1 wherein said plurality of conduits have at least one intersection point.
 19. The process of claim 1 wherein said polymer conduits comprise a nanocomposite material.
 20. The process of claim 19 wherein said nanocomposite comprises layered particles. 